Taylor Swift - folklore (July 24, 2020) Album • Page 151

Yeah I'm thinking these are going to sound as close to the originals as possible, maybe slight variation in extra instrumentation or production techniques.

 

Honestly I’m probably going to listen to these like once even if they’re pretty different

 

It makes sense to record them near identical but the people deserve the 1989 Love Story studio version

 

Sounds like a song I've heard before!

 

Yeah, I hope she includes stuff like that as bonus tracks as an added incentive for listeners to want to buy them. But also, her voice is just so much better and more developed than they were on the original recordings, so that is enough of an incentive for me to at least pick up the first 2 or 3 albums.

I wonder if she's going to have the same guest vocalists on these. Colbie Caillat, Eddie Shee-Shee, the dude from Snow Patrol, etc.

 

The thing is, the way her voice sounds on those early records is kind of part of the appeal, at least for me. Fearless sounds as youthful as the songs SHOULD sound, given what they’re about. More musically accomplished versions will be fun to hear, but I think they might also lose something.

 

I was expecting to hear a huge vocal difference in the love story snippet but it actually amazed me how she was able to sound almost exactly like the original take.

 

Totally makes sense. I can see both sides of the coin, for sure.

 

Yeah, the recording doesn't have that country twang on her vocals that she had back in the day, but that's the only really noticeable difference. Would they need to completely re-record all the instrumentation from scratch in order to not get in trouble? The distorted guitar slide sounds identical to the original, which makes me wonder if these are just the same instrumentals, but re-mixed. The fiddles are louder and more prominent in this new version, it sounds like. But I can't tell if they are re-recorded or not.

 

I think her vocals sound pretty different across the board. There's this really effusive abandon to the original that's replaced here with more practiced precision. It's kind of hard to describe, but having just spun Fearless on vinyl a couple days ago, I was really struck by how much her vocals have changed since then.

As for the instrumentals, I would assume they'd have to be re-recorded, since she doesn't own the masters.

 

I'm spinning Fearless right now, and mannnn "Jump Then Fall" is so perfect the way it is. You're absolutely right about her voice being perfect for these original recordings. The re-recordings will be cool cuz we'll be able to hear revisiting some old songs that got her to where she is today, but I think the youthful magic of the originals can't be recreated. Maybe we're wrong though! We probably are. The new ones will probably kick the originals asses and we'll kneel down to our queen and she'll smack our hands.

 

I'm sure they will be fun, no matter what. I've been saying all along that it's very unlikely they ever become the definitive versions of these songs/albums, but I'm willing to be proven wrong. I'd personally love if she softens some of the edges of the production on Reputation, even just a little bit. I think some very minor changes would make that album a lot better, so even if she's not straying too far from the originals, I'm still excited to hear everything.

 

The point's not really for a listener standpoint, it's a business (licensing/sync) one.

If anything, this guarantees for me that (1) there won't be a substantial push for this outside of streaming services and (2) she's definitely only redoing the songs she gets frequent sync requests about. It all makes sense -- rerecording 6 albums is insane and not actually worth it from a financial perspective. She can use her leverage with streaming services to make sure that only her re-recorded music appears on algorithmic playlists, and 95% of those older songs aren't making her much money.

Best thing a fan can hope for at this point is some of those crossover or "lost" versions as bonus tracks.

 

I can't believe we got Reputation, Lover, and folklore all within 3 years. And if one or more of these re-recorded albums come out this month, that'll blow my mind even more.

 

You think this guarantees that she isn't doing full albums, but just singles/popular songs? What exactly makes you think that? Seems like she would have clarified something like that since fans are expecting each album to be re-recorded in its entirety.

 

Love Story (2008) vs Love Story (2020) : TaylorSwift

 

It should go without saying, but this Ryan Reynolds ad placement isn't just a "fun thing for a friend" -- it's a demonstration that she is going to have her classic songs available for sync in a way that is virtually indistinguishable from the original and won't cause any drama with the artist.

Fans will go along with it. The stans are the only ones who care about the music industry politics anyway.

 

Also, did folks see Time Magazine gave it #1? The 10 Best Albums of 2020

 

I could see the big hits staying closer to the originals so they can be used in commercials like this, and then she gets more creative with deeper cuts to give fans a reason to listen.

I'm also curious if we might see some kind of greatest hits come out of this. I know that's not really a thing these days, but I have to imagine there are still plenty of people who would pick that up at Target or whatever not even knowing/caring they were re-recorded.

 

I'm fascinated by some of the very developed theories y'all (and I mean y'all, this isn't to one person) can draw from a very short clip and I'll be equally fascinated to see if any of them are actually correct when the time comes

 

I can definitely hear the difference with them side by side here. I think it’s close but like someone said it sounds more like new Taylor trying to emulate that old vocal style. Nothing crazy about that, her voice and singing have just changed over time.

As for re-recording everything I think that’s what she intends to do based on how she talks about it. If anything she is very in tune with what her fanbase wants and I’m sure this time it won’t be any different.

 

I totally understand the business decisions behind all this, but I feel like she'd clarify that she was only re-recording the popular songs rather than full albums, if that is her intention because she's making it sound like she's doing everything and then some.

 

I would imagine her plans are flexible. Realistically, 85% of this is a power move to get control of the original recordings again, and once she's "won" the fans won't care at all about this whole endeavor. As long as she gives them a couple of cool things they'll be happy.

 

I get why she'd focus on re-recording only the popular songs that she gets asked for by film studios and such, but if we don't get a new recording of "I'm Only Me When I'm With You" I'll flip a god damn table.

 

whether or not she's doing the bonus tracks is something I can't wait to see.